INF/TE/IDP/R/6  
 
1 July  2022 
(22-5101) Page: 1/5 
 Original: English  
 
INFORMAL DIALOGUE ON PLASTIC S POLLUTION AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE 
PLASTIC S TRADE  
PLENARY MEETING HELD ON 24 MAY 2022 
Informal Summary  by the Coordinators1 
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1. The second plenary meeting of the Informal Dialogue on Plastics Pollution and Environmentally 
Sustainable Plastics Trade (IDP) planned for 2022 was held on 24 May 2022. The meeting was 
chaired by Australia  and t he agenda for the meeting was contained in the WTO document 
INF/TE/IDP/CN/ 6/Rev.1 , first circulated on 13 May. All WTO Members were invited to attend the 
meeting.  
2. The meeting was divided into several segments covering discussions and progress in the 
pre-plenary meeting of 11 May 2022 , a briefing on the proposed next steps to implement the 
Ministerial State ment, as well as  a briefing on MC12 . Delegations further engaged on guiding 
questions first shared at the previous plenary meeting.  
 
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY COORDINATORS  
3. The meeting was opened with remarks by Ambassador José Valencia (Ecuador) highlighting 
the relevance of the Dialogue 's work in light of major multilateral efforts which are underway on 
plastic pollution  such as the United Nations Environment Assembly ( UNEA ) 5.2 resolution  to 
negotiate a new treaty on plastics pollution , Stockholm+50 Conference , Oceans Conference and the 
Conferences of the Parties (C OPs) of Basel, Stockholm and Rotterdam  (BRS)  Conventions . He 
recalled the concrete steps proposed  by the group  to implement the Minis terial Statement including 
the voluntary survey on trade -related plastics measures  (TrPMs) , an Aid for Trade (AfT) needs 
assessment  survey and a joint workshop with the United Nations  Conference on Trade and 
Development  (UNCTAD ) on substitutes and alternatives to plastics. He also highlighted the 
Dialogue 's decision to deepen its collaboration with the World Customs Organization (WCO)  and 
encouraged delegations  to work on these  next concrete  steps that would be present ed at the  MC12. 
4. Ambassador Li Chenggang (China) commended all interested WTO Members on their 
contributions and welcome d new Members continually joining the Dialogue . He appreciated the work 
of the WTO Secretariat and the range of stakeholder who are contributing to the Dialogue  process.  
He also indicated  that Coordinators were working on  a ministerial statement which would be shared 
at a press briefing  on the Dialogue  at the MC12  and would  reaffirm our commitment to work on the 
topic of plastic pollution and provide clear guidance for the future work in Geneva.  With an "all hands 
on deck" approach, the Ambassador noted that the work of the IDP  could  contribute to solving many 
aspects of plastics pollution  especially in identifying challenges and opportunities on the trade and 
value chains side that can inform other international processes, including the  UN treaty negotiations.   
 
1 This summary, prepared and circulated under the Coordinators responsibility, is being shared with a 
view to providing delegations with a record of the discussions and assisting them in reporting back to their 
capitals. It provides a non -exhaustive, illust rative review of the issues addressed by Members at the meeting. 
The voluntary Coordinators were Australia, Barbados, China, Ecuador, Fiji and Morocco . INF/TE/IDP/R/6  
 
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  5. WTO Deputy Director -General Jean -Marie Paugam also provided  opening remarks, pointing 
out the importance of addressing plastic pollution  across the product's full life cycle and the role of 
transparency  of plastic transboundary material flows and trade -related policies on the topic . Noting 
the constructive and productive efforts being developed at the WTO, h e suggested that the Dialogue  
could establish a Global Plastic Value Chain Portal to showcase the growing transparency results of 
the initiative, monito r plastic trade flows and share trade -related policies and measures.  
6. After these introductory remarks, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia took the floor to announce that 
it had joined the group as a co -sponsor,  which was then welcomed by delegations.  
BRIEFIN G ON DISCUSSIONS AND PROGRESS IN THE PRE -PLENARY MEETING OF 11 MAY 
2022  
7. Australia, one of the Coordinator s of the group , facilitated the discussion s and opened the 
floor for any further reactions to the guiding questions first shared at the first plenary meeting on  
30 March 2022 . Overall, delegations supported the transparency exercise to collect information on 
various trade -related plastics policies and g ood practices. One delegation noted the need to address 
fossil fuel subsidies to tackle issues related to plastics. It also noted that it would be advisable to 
establish close cooperation between customs authorities and move forward towards harmonized 
nome nclature and standardised  design and eco -labelling for plastics. Discussions also highlighted 
that international cooperation including consideration of the work done by UNEA, BRS and WCO was 
critical to combat plastic pollution and transition to a circular  economy.  
 
BRIEFING ON THE PROPOSED NEXT STEPS TO IMPLEMENT THE MINISTERIAL 
STATEMENT AND RELATED DISCUSSIONS  
3.1  Communication to the W orld Customs Organization (WCO)  
8. The WC O informed participants that during its May 2022 session , the Harmonized System 
Review Sub -Committee (RSC) had begun considering a proposal from the Secretariat of the 
Basel  Convention for an expansion of the HS provisions related to  plastic s in its Harmonized  
Systems  (HS) 2027 revision to better identify plastic wastes listed in the Plastics Amendment to the 
Basel Convention . Progress had been  very positive , with a high level of engagement  from customs 
administrations.  A major area of discussion  was clarifying the level of contamination that would be 
allowable in plastic waste to ensu re a clear distinction between single polymer  waste and mixed 
wastes. The other area under discussion  was the criteria and testing methods in relation to 
dangerous substances. WCO informed that discussions would continue at the November Session  of 
the RSC. If the remaining questions were settled, then it would  proceed to the Harmonized System 
Committee in March 2023 for voting.  
 
9. China made a presentation on  the suggested elements of the communication to the WCO. The 
draft communication ( INF/TE/IDP/W/6 ) included a call for the WTO Secretariat to enhance its 
cooperation with the WCO Secretariat, notably on plastics customs classification  and implementation 
challenges. It also included a pledge by co -sponsors to actively engage in support of efforts at the 
WCO to better identify plastics flows. China noted that the cooperation between WCO and WTO could 
also contribute to the negotiations o f the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) in the 
UNEA  process  to negotiate a new international legally binding instrument to address plastic pollution . 
China invited delegations to provide any further reactions before the communication was adopte d 
and transmitted to the WCO.  
 
3.2  Enhanced cooperation with international processes.  
10. Ambassador  Rui M acieira ( Portugal ) outlined plans for the 2022 UN Ocean Conference to be 
held from 27 June to 1 July in Lisbon  under the theme "Scaling up the ocean action based on science 
and innovation for the implementation of Goal 14: stocktaking, partnerships and solutions ". The 
Confe rence w ould include eight interactive dialogues to tackle a wide range of issues, such as marine 
pollution, sustainable fisheries, science and marine technology transfer, sustainable ocean -based 
economies, and others.  Given the relevant work of IDP, he drew attention  to the interactive Dialogue 
on marine pollution that w ould address the new challenges related to marine litter (including macro 
and microplastics, nutrients and sediment, fuel waste, amongst others) and underwater noise. He 
also invited the gro up to participate in the Conference and the "Blue Talks" that were taking placing 
in Geneva.   INF/TE/IDP/R/6  
 
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  11. The BRS Secretariat briefed participants on the upcoming triple COPs taking place from  
6-17 June 2022 in Geneva . It informed the group that for the Basel Convention COP -15, the agenda 
had many plastic -related elements such as technical guidelines on plastic waste, guidance on plastic 
waste inventory, plastic waste partnership  and effective evaluation of the measures  taken under the 
Basel Convention to address plastic waste . It also apprised the group of the Plastic Forum which 
would include side events on plastic pollution. The BRS Secretariat  further  noted  it was looking 
forward to  effectiv ely cooperat ing with WCO a nd WTO on the implement ation of  the Prior Informed 
Consent ( PIC) procedur e.  
 
12. The United Kingdom took the floor to reinforce to delegations that  the upcoming COP 15 of the 
Basel Conventi on would consider draft guidelines on environmentally sound management of plastics 
waste. The UK, China and Japan ha d co-led a small intersessional working group tasked at the 
previous COP in 2019 to update these guidelines. Significant progress on the guidelines h ad been 
made since then  and c o-lead countries hope d they would be adopted at the C OP. In addition, the 
COP would consider reports prepared by the Basel Secretariat on further considerations of actions 
on plastic waste and the possible effectiveness of the measures taken under the Base l Convention 
to control plastic waste and to report on the activities o f the Plastic Waste Partnership.   
 
13. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)  encouraged delegations to participate in 
the upcoming preparatory meeting  of the ad hoc open -ended  working group (OEWG) – taking place 
in Dakar (30 May – 1 June  2022) in Dakar – which would  prepare the modalities of negotiations of 
a legally binding plastics treaty. The meeting  would  include one specific dialogue on finance and 
trade issues  in which th e WTO Secretariat had been invited to participate and contribute its trade 
expertise.  
 
14. The Forum on Trade, Environment & the SDGs  (TESS)  informed participants about  a new TESS 
policy brief that put forward options that could be pursued in the current 2022 -2027 HS amendment 
cycle. The policy brief dr ew on a longer research paper and highlight ed the key shortfalls that 
amendments could seek to address . Some of the key shortfalls  include d inter alia  insufficient 
differentiation of primary plastics, persistent organic pollutants and other harmful chemicals, gaps 
in scope of products classified as plastics, varying detail on the share of plastics embedded in 
products and i nadequate information on plastic packaging and material composition of plastic 
products . It also  outline d some options that governments could focus on in this amendment cycle, 
offering proposals on each stage of the life cycle of plastics  such as creating new HS subheadings to 
allow for greater disaggregation of primary polymer types, amending HS subheadings to incorporate 
specific information for products made of polymers that contain POPs and other harmful chemical 
additives etc.  
 
15. The International Union for Conservation of Nature  (IUCN) proposed areas of work on which 
its engagement with the Dialogue  could be most useful. These included,  inter alia,  (i) support ing 
engagement and networking between trade, environmental and biodiversity platforms on exchange 
and linkages  such as  the IUCN's policy gap analysis for plastic pollution and its economic policy 
analysis on solutions and interventions to address plastic pollution ; (ii) HS codes are relevant for 
plastic foot printing therefore  IUCN could help in  linking customs and trade data systems  to better 
integrate plastic foot printing methodologies for national level accounting ; and (iii) integrat ing 
national level learning on the implementation of actions and using its national foot  printing 
methodologies (which was codeveloped with UNEP) as a basis to identify interventions and 
instruments for addressing those hotspots identified related to trade.  The IUCN also explained that 
their work on hotspots focus sed on identifying leakage of plastic polymers, the sectors that are 
producing the leakage (such as plastic packaging) and also waste management and geographical 
areas of where is this happening.  
 
16. Participants then heard an update on  the other IDP -led activities that would  also form part of 
the next steps for the group  to implement the Ministerial Statement. These include d (i) the AfT needs 
assessment survey ( INF/TE/IDP/W/8 ), (ii) a surv ey of Members' TrPMs  (INF/TE/IDP/W/7 ), and (iii) 
a workshop on sustainable and effective plastic substitutes and alternatives.  
 INF/TE/IDP/R/6  
 
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  3.3  Survey on Aid for Trade (AfT) review and needs, and proposed event at the Eighth 
Global Review 2022  
17. The WTO Secretariat provided an update o n recent developments related to the AfT initiative.  
It was  recalled that during the last regular meeting  of the Dialogue  on 30 March, the AfT Unit  had 
presented some of the key messages emanating from the 2022 AfT Monitoring & Evaluation exercise 
which was framed under their current work Af T programme, titled "Empowering, Connected, 
Sustainable Trade".  The responses received to the accompanying quest ionnaire to this exercise 
suggest ed that the environmental dimension was being mainstreamed in national, regional and 
donor strategies, though at different speeds and tracks.  Moreover, while their questionnaire did not 
specifically address the plastic dime nsion , eleven respondents provided additional information on 
initiatives related to this topic . Delegations were informed that catering to the trend, environmental 
sustainability would be one of the key themes at the upcoming AfT Global Review, to be held from 
27-29 July  2022. The Secretariat also confirm ed that a session requested by IDP Coordinators , titled 
"Plastics, the circular economy and options to mainstream trade -related cooperation to tackle plastic 
pollution in aid for trade" w ould be held  during the  review.  
 
18. The Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGS (TESS) informed delegations about its 
recently released Policy brief on “Aid for Trade Priorities in the WTO Informal Dialogue on Plastics 
Pollution.” The policy bri ef laid out some specific short - and medium -term options for the next steps 
that co-sponsors  of the Dialogue  could consider on AfT and plastic pollution.  
 
3.4  Survey of Trade -related Plastics Measures (TrPMs)   
19. Colombia informed that  as presented during the pre -plenary meeting on 11 May 2022, 
coordinators  and facilitators, with the support of the  WTO Secretariat, had put together a survey to 
identify Member’s TrPMs . The voluntary survey was intended to improve the collective knowledge , 
map policies, and identify gaps and potential opportunities . It outline d eight questions, regarding: 
(i) title and description of the policy or measure ; (ii) t he type of measures covered (providing some 
guiding options) ; (iii) the m ain objective of the p olicy; (iv) s tage of the life cycle or value chain that 
the policy was intended for ; (v) p roducts and services covered ; (vi) r elevant HS/ICS codes ; 
(vii) date of entry into force ; and (viii) c hallenges identified in the implementation phase.  
 
20. The United Kingdom informed the participants about a significant domestic measure – the 
Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT) which was recently introduced with the aim of tackling global issue of 
plastic pollu tion. The PPT came into force in 1 April 2022 and encourage d the use of recycled plastic 
instead of new material within plastic packaging. The UK estimate d that the tax would  create greater 
demand to recycle plastic and in turn stimulate increased levels o f recycling (around 40% more 
recycled plastic) and collection of plastic waste, diverting it away from landfill or incineration. 
Moreover, since using new plastic has greater carbon impact than recycled plastic, the tax was also 
expected to generate carbon  savings. The UK further shared that in addition to rounds of formal 
consultations with stakeholders, engagement with businesses had taken place throughout the 
development and implementation of the tax.  
 
3.5  Proposed Workshop on Sustainable and Effective Plast ic Substitutes and Alternatives  
21. The Philippines recalled the UNCTAD and UNEP’s insights on life cycle assessments (LCA), 
wherein the  research had revealed that reusable products  had a better environmental footprint than 
single use plastics. However, re search had also show n that plastic alternatives and substitutes ha d 
different environmental impacts, and the success of a life cycle approach was largely contingent on 
the behaviour  of consumers and businesses.  It was further  recalled that there was a broad 
receptiveness by the Dialogue  to UNCTAD’s recommendation to organize a workshop to take a 
deeper dive on plastic substitutes and alternatives, including criteria for life cycle analysis and 
working definitions or design pri nciples related to substitutes, alternatives, reusability, recyclability, 
compostability, and biodegradability.   
 
3.6  Discussions and reactions by delegations and stakeholders on the proposed next 
steps to implement the Ministerial Statement  
22. Overall, delegations showed clear support for the proposed surveys , events  and enhanced 
participation in other international processes . Discussions highlighted that these efforts would help 
to reveal the full picture of trade flows of plastic materials and  to build a good foundation for seeking INF/TE/IDP/R/6  
 
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  trade-related solutions to address plastic pollution.  One delegation suggested involving more 
stakeholders in surveys, not requiring replies that are too detailed and avoiding duplication of work. 
A few delegat ions underscored the need for not losing sight of the full life cycle issue while tackling 
specific aspects of plastic value chains and ensuring environmental soundness ( e.g. of plastic 
substitutes and alternatives). Some  delegations  also suggested making better use of the existing 
AfT progr ammes to meet the specific needs of least -developed countries in mitigating plastic 
pollution. A few delegations underscored the need for enhanced cooperation on standards to avoid 
regulatory fragm entation. One delegation noted that the survey of TrPMs would help  identify best 
practices and emerging regulatory trends  and could feed into the DDG’s idea of a plastics value chain 
portal, and which ultimately could lead to broader regulatory and policy coherence as well as further 
contribute to the UNEA process.  Several delegations expressed strong support for the suggestion by 
DDG Paugam of a data portal.  Delegations also supported the WTO's contribution  to the multi-
stakeholder's session  of UNEA  in Dakar and suggested that the Dialogue's co-sponsors  could consider 
how to best contribute to it, for instance, by facilitating the dialogue between trade and 
environmental officials.  
 
PLANS FOR WTO 12TH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ( MC12 ) 
23. Austral ia informed  that Coordinators were considering how best to reflect the progress of the 
initiative at MC12. The plan was to circulate the final versions of the three IDP documents before 
the MC12, namely the communication to the WCO and the two surveys. A few delegations noted  
that, while they considered the communication to WCO as a good initiative, they were waiting for 
final comments from their capitals and would prefer to wait before moving ahead with this effort.  
 
24. Australia also  announced that Coordinators were planning to  co-host a press briefing on plastic 
pollution and trade at MC12 , involving trade Ministers , to hig hlight their commitment to work on this 
topic and provide a clear guidance for future work in Geneva. Coordinators were also discussing a 
potential Ministerial Statement by their Ministers to illustrate the good advancements made , early 
results and next st eps planned  by the initiative  to implement the Ministerial Statement from 
December 2021 . 
 
25. The International Institute for Sustainable Development  (IISD) informed that it  would be 
organizing a second Trade and Sustainability Hub on 13 -15 June 2022. The round table dedicated 
to trade and environment would  take place on 14 June 2022 in partnership with some of the 
stakeholders present in the meeting , including TESS and UNEP. Th e roundtable would look across 
the range of environmental challenges facing the planet and consider how well the multilateral 
trading system was responding to the urgency of the situation.  
 
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